Archaeobotanical Studies at the Urartian Site of Ayanis in Van Province, Eastern Turkey
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Turkish Journal of Botany Turk J Bot (2013) 37: 282-296 http://journals.tubitak.gov.tr/botany/ © TÜBİTAK Research Article doi:10.3906/bot-1204-3 Archaeobotanical studies at the Urartian site of Ayanis in Van Province, eastern Turkey Tuğba SOLMAZ, Emel OYBAK DÖNMEZ* Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Hacettepe University, 06800 Beytepe, Ankara, Turkey Received: 03.04.2012 Accepted: 18.09.2012 Published Online: 15.03.2013 Printed: 15.04.2013 Abstract: Archaeobotanical macro remains recovered from the Ayanis fortress and the outer town of the Urartian period of the Iron Age (685–645 BC), located in the area of Van (Turkey), were investigated. Most of the remains were charred due to fire. Large quantities of Hordeum vulgare L. (hulled barley), Panicum miliaceum L. (broomcorn millet), and Setaria italica (L.) P.Beauvois (foxtail millet) were found at the study site, indicating the storage of agricultural surplus. Other types of cereal remains were also recorded, including Triticum aestivum L. (bread wheat) and Secale cereale L. (rye). Ground wheat grains were also recovered and their starch microstructure under scanning electron microscope suggests that these remains represent a bulgur-like food preparation. The data suggest that in the area of Ayanis plant-based agricultural activities were based mainly on cereals in the Iron Age. The findings also include fruits of Carum carvi L. (caraway, Persian cumin), Coriandrum sativum L. (coriander), and Petroselinum crispum (Mill.) Fuss (parsley). In view of the folkloric use of these plants, it is thought that the material from Ayanis represents condiments and/or medicinal herbs used by the Urartians in Anatolia about 2600 years ago. Key words: Archaeobotany, Urartu, Ayanis, Van, Turkey, Iron Age 1. Introduction (Rusaipatari) (Hopf & Willerding, 1988) in Nakhchivan, The Iron Age Kingdom of Urartu emerged around Lake and Karmir Blur (Teishebaina) (Bedigian, 1985) in Van in present-day eastern Turkey and existed from 860 BC Armenia, provided some significant information on until 585 BC. During its maximum territorial expansion in Urartian plant-related activities. the eighth and seven centuries BC Urartu was a large state, The present investigation was performed on plant extending from north-eastern Mesopotamia and eastern remains from a highly defensible Urartian fortress, Ayanis and south-eastern Anatolia to the southern Caucasus and (Rusahinili), situated in Van Province (Figure 1). There the Caspian Sea (Çilingiroğlu, 1994; Belli, 2007). has been only a preliminary report of 2 archaeobotanical The people of Urartu were mostly farmers. The kingdom samples from the site so far (Cocharro et al., 2001). The exercised its central authority to control the planting and main objective of the present study was to provide further harvesting of crops, and the storage and redistribution information on Urartian plant-related activities in the of the products from its territories. Agricultural surplus area, based on many archaeobotanical samples. The site and products were stored in huge storerooms of several has been excavated under the direction of Prof Dr Altan fortresses, which served as economic administrative centres (Sağlamtimur, 2005). Çilingiroğlu (Çilingiroğlu, 1991). Previous archaeobotanical studies carried out in Van Province in eastern Turkey report on the analysis of 2. The study area plant remains recovered from Early Bronze Age levels at The province of Van is situated in the east Taurus Dilkaya Höyüğü (Nesbitt & Samuel, 1996). The Urartian Mountains in eastern Turkey. Ayanis lies 35 km north of texts contain few data on agricultural activities. However, the city of Van, near the modern village of Ağartı, on the archaeobotanical investigations at several Urartian eastern shore of Lake Van (Figure 1). The site overlooks sites, such as Anzavurtepe and Değirmentepe at Patnos a large plateau where there are several tributaries of the (Ağrı) (Oybak Dönmez, 2003) and Yoncatepe (Van) Karasu Stream at an altitude of about 2000 m, supporting (Oybak Dönmez & Belli, 2007) in eastern Turkey, Bastam agricultural activities by irrigation. * Correspondence: [email protected] 282 SOLMAZ and OYBAK DÖNMEZ / Turk J Bot Mount Tendürek Patnos T U R K E Y Aladağlar Mount Süphan Lake Haçlı Bendimahi Plain Lake Nazik Lake Erçek AYANİS Karagündüz Lake Van Mount Varak Van Mount Mount Erek Tushpa Yoncatepe Nemrut Dilkaya Çavuştepe 0 50 km Figure 1. Location map of Ayanis in the area of Van and some of the sites mentioned in the text. The sediments of Lake Van have been investigated to charcoal analysis from the Ayanis site suggested that the document environmental changes in the region in the area of Lake Van would have supported a vegetation with past (Kempe & Degens, 1978; Landmann et al., 1996a, different species of Pinus L. (pine) about 2600 years ago 1996b; Lemcke & Sturm, 1997; Wick et al., 2003; Litt et (Cocharro et al., 2001). In addition, a study by Newton and al., 2007). In addition, widely exposed terraces around Kuniholm (2007) revealed that a variety of wood species, Lake Van have provided complementary data on the including elm (Ulmus L.), juniper (Juniperus L.), oak, chronology of past lake-level and lake-volume changes, and poplar (Populus L.), was employed in construction at and their link to past climatic change (Kuzucuoğlu Ayanis. According to Wick et al. (2003), human impact in et al., 2010). Litt et al. (2007) have suggested that the the catchment of Lake Van has increased over the last 600 >400-m-thick sediments deposited at the bottom of years. the lake could correspond to several stages. They have Today, the climate in the Van region is continental. published the first evidence of a Last Glacial maximum Average monthly temperatures are below 0 °C from record in Lake Van sediments. December to February and around 20 °C during the Based on high-resolution pollen, charcoal, isotopic, summer months (Kuzucuoğlu et al., 2010). The annual and geochemical analyses, the study of sediments from precipitation shows a strong spatial gradient, declining Lake Van, which span about 13,000 varve years, indicated from 907 mm year–1 in Tatvan in the south-west to 396 several different climatic phases and vegetation change mm year–1 in the city of Van in the centre and 487 mm during the Late Quaternary in the region of Ayanis (Wick year–1 in the north-east of the region (Kuzucuoğlu et al., et al., 2003). The study showed that the Late-Glacial period 2010). in the region was cold and dry. Steppe vegetation was The present natural vegetation of Van Province has dominant at that time. Geochemical and isotopic records received a great deal attention from botanists, and many have proved a strong increase in moisture, high fire floristic studies have been conducted in various parts of frequencies, and rising lake level at the beginning of the the region [Çadır (Artos) Mountain by Boynukara and Holocene. Meanwhile, Pistacia L. (pistachio) and Quercus Öztürk (1992), Toprakkale by Öğün and Altan (1992), the L. (oak) started to expand. The steppe–forest vegetation islands of Lake Van by Behçet and Altan (1993), Kurubaş was dominated by oak and it advanced at about 6200 BP. Pass by Öztürk and Behçet (1998), and Özalp by Özgökçe After 4000 BP, aridity increased again. The modern climatic and Behçet (2007)]. New dicotyledonous species and situation was set at about 2000 BP. In the pollen diagram, some lichen species have been recorded from the province human activity has been traced since 3800 BP. The forest (Hamzaoğlu et al., 2011; Karagöz & Aslan, 2012). There is, elements declined and herbs expanded. However, wood however, no detailed floristic study in the area of Ayanis. 283 SOLMAZ and OYBAK DÖNMEZ / Turk J Bot The natural vegetation of the Van region belongs to 3.1.1. Temple complex the Irano-Turanian phytogeographic region (Özgökçe The temple complex is located in the middle of the & Behçet, 2007). The region is in general dominated by fortress. There is a square core area built in the name of steppic formations, including species of Astragalus L., the Urartian god Haldi. Some weapons, a bronze cauldron, Acantholimon Boiss, Centaurea L., Euphorbia L., Salvia and bone fragments were found to have been filled with L., and Verbascum L. There is little woodland left in plant products (Çilingiroğlu, 2004). the province, probably owing to thousands of years of In the south, several storerooms built adjacent to the human impact. However, in the south of the region some complex were excavated and they are supposed to be patches of oak forest are present at elevations of 2500– related to the temple. The storerooms contain many large 2700 m. The forest includes several oak species [Quercus and small vessels, including pithoi (large storage jars) and infectoria Oliver subsp. boissieri (Reut.) O.Schwarz, Q. plates. A total of 18 pithoi were found to have been placed brantii Lindley, and Q. libani Olivier], Celtis L. species in 2 rows. Each pithos is 2.15 m high and 1.5 m wide, (C. glabrata Steven ex Planch. and C. tournefortii Lam.), without any descriptions. The vessels would have stored Juniperus species (J. oxycedrus L. subsp. oxycedrus and crops, food, and liquids. It is thought that the vessels in J. excelsa M.Bieb.), Crataegus meyeri Pojark., Rhamnus the complex may have been maintained for rituals and the pallasii Fisch. & C.A.Mey., Ephedra major Host, and Rosa temple personnel. pisiformis (Christ) D.Sosn. 3.1.2. Storerooms The storerooms were found in the south-west of the mound 3. The Ayanis site and are also called “western magazines”. In the storerooms The Ayanis excavations have been carried out in the 2 main hundreds of pithoi were found to have been half buried in the areas of the site: the fortress and the outer town. ground, mostly in 3 rows.